DON"T FORGET!

Of course we're participating! Blogging out Hunger was begun several weeks ago by Deb Smith at Jersey Bites, and heartily promoted by Art Gallagher at More Monmouth Musings.

Help out the Community Food Bank of New Jersey any way you can. You can log on to their website and donate, or make a contribution at your favorite store, including A&P, Food Basics, Foodtown, Genuardi’s, Kings, Pathmark, ShopRite, Super Fresh and Wegman's.

You can donate to local food pantries. Many Monmouth County houses of worship run these. Check yours out.

Remember that Christmas is about giving. And remember that this goes on all year. There are always those who will need some help. Let not the days after Christmas become bleak for those less fortunate. Always feel free to lend a hand. Food, clothing, whatever.

Thank you.

SITYS

"You heard it right: If you want to work in Monmouth County, you have to ask Union County first."
...Freeholder Robert D. Clifton

SITYS. See, I Told You So.
Readers of this blog will know that for the last few years I have been writing about the Monmouth County Democrats' connections with Camden and Union Counties.
It's come full circle.
In my last post I revealed how County Commissioner-elect Amy Mallet, a George Norcross acolyte, had received a contribution of thousands of dollars from a Camden County assemblyman. Now it comes out that they have asked Assemblyman Joe Cryan (D-Union), a wheeling supporter of theirs, to help them in filling at least four top appointments in county government.
Let's take a look at the county. Back in the days of Director Harry Larrison, positions were filled based upon party loyalty, as well as personal fealty to Harry. Often a job would go to members of a local governing body so as to augment their pension. We had people like Ray O'Grady (Middletown Township Committee), Tom Broderick (Marlboro Township Committee), and Tony Palughi (Long Branch City Council), as well as others. County Commissioner John "Flippy" D'Amico voted for Palughi based on a blank application.
Since the Bid Rig days, with new Republican freeholders, the county has attempted to get away from that. Department heads are now chosen based on their resumé. Often people who have worked their way up from entry level are now promoted from within, as in the HIghway and Bridge departments.
Recently, the Republican freeholders were criticized for turning over hiring authority to County Administrator Robert Czech. Democrats, with the assistance of the Asbury Park Press, accused them of attempting to "burrow in" GOP loyalists. It now looks as if the freeholders were more interested in preserving the reforms of the past four years and protect the Monmouth County taxpayer from outside Democratic interests.

As Freeholder Clifton said: "That tells us that not only are the Democrats eager to begin instituting an expensive and outdated patronage system here in Monmouth County, it appears they are looking in to burrow in these loyalists with civil service titles as quickly as possible."

Get ready for a long, bumpy ride, campers. This could get ugly. Fast.

CAMDEN. IT'S CLOSER THAN YOU THINK

A look at County Commissioner-elect Amy "Hammerhead" Mallet's November 24 ELEC report shows a November 3 contribution of $3,000.00 from the Election Fund of Assemblyman Louis Greenwald. That's Greenwald, D-Camden.
So, we were correct about her George Norcross ties.
She also got $350.00 from Carteret Mayor Dan Reiman's fund. Carteret's in Middlesex County, and then there's $2,000.00 a mysterious PAC, the Coalition for Government Efficiency, based in Eatontown.
And the wheel goes round.

MALLET WINS

The Asbury Park Press has declared county commissioner candidate Amy Mallet the unofficial winner by 328 over freeholder candidate John Curley. The results are expected to be certified on Thursday.
This hands control of the county to the Democrats, and can be considered a victory for county democratic boss Victor Scudiery, as well as George Norcross III and other out-of-county Democrats.
We are hearing that County Commish John "Flippy" D'Amico will be named as Director.
No word yet as to whether Curley will go for a recount.

FREDERICK von NIEDA

Eric Sedler guessed right!
Frederick von Nieda (1868 - 1950) was the last Republican Mayor of Camden. That's right, Camden had a Republican Mayor. And not just one, either. Mayor von Nieda was no fluke, rather, he was the last of a long line of Republicans to hold the mayor's office in the former GOP stronghold of Camden, NJ.
Republicans controlled Camden more often than not from the Civil War era up till 1936, when von Nieda was defeated by Democrat George E. Brunner, who would hold office until 1959. (Between 1863 and 1936, there were only six Democratic mayors to 13 Republicans.) Democrats continue to hold a monopoly on Camden's City Hall to this day.
Camden, unlike other urban centers, was run by the GOP. It is notable that during its Republican era, Camden was a bustling center of commerce and prosperity. Industry was booming, the city's inhabitants lived in solid, safe neighborhoods with leafy parks. Its mayors were not serially perp-walked from office. Indeed, someone may once have asked, where in New Jersey are Democrats doing a better job governing than Republicans are doing in Camden and Camden County? It is also notable that during its Democratic era, Camden has declined into a teeming slum, a place to escape from. Not only white flight, black flight too. And three out of the six most recent mayors were convicted of corruption.
The Republican Party remained strong in suburban Camden County after the decline of the city. Two Republican governors, Alfred E. Driscoll and William T. Cahill, both hailed from Camden County. Cahill, a former congressman, held the 1st District House seat now held by Democrat Rob Andrews. Cahill's successor in the House, John Hunt, would lose his seat in the 1974 election to Democrat Jim Florio.
Today, the Democratic Party is all-pervasive in Camden County; its leaders seek to export their influence statewide.

G-MAN CHRISTIE RESIGNS

The Asbury Park Press reports that U. S. Attorney Christopher Christie has resigned his federal post effective December 1.
A former Morris County Freeholder, Christie has served as U. S. Attorney for New Jersey since 2002. Among other achievements, Christie has convicted over 130 corrupt politicians of both parties, notably those caught in the big Bid Rig sting. His office is also prosecuting the Fort Dix Six.
Some Democrats have criticized Christie as partisan, saying he unfairly targeted Democratic officials for prosecution. That criticism would appear, however, to be nothing more than an attempt to discredit Christie should he seek the Republican nomination for Governor. Too, the Democrats have a nasty habit of circling the wagons when one of their own gets caught doing wrong.
Many (Not all) of the Bid Rig felons were Republicans, as was Mayor Matt Scannapieco of Marlboro. And need I mention that both Paterson Mayor Martin G. Barnes and Essex County Executive Jim Treffinger were Republicans.
Maybe Christie indicts and prosecutes Democrats because there are simply more of them. Maybe there are simply more of them who are corrupt. Maybe the Democrats should be careful of their whiny criticism of Christie, lest they bring attention to the corruption in their party. Maybe Christie indicts and prosecutes Democrats because no one else will.
It has long been suspected that Christie is interested in a run for Governor. (He would join former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan in that category) So far, he has made no announcement. He is somewhat of an enigma politically, as his Federal post has limited his ability to take public stands on issues. Those blanks should soon be filled should he run.
It is uncertain who the Obama Administration would appoint to replace Christie. As U. S. Attorney is a political appointment we would expect it to go to a Democrat. At publishing time we have no ionformation as to whether Peter Harvey, Zulima Farber or Hamlet Goore are interested.

DON'T IT MAKE MY RED STATE BLUE, OR, WHO LOST NEW JERSEY?

Our State of New Jersey is often characterized as a "blue", or Democratic state. And, to be truthful, the Democratic Party has dominated the state in recent presidential elections, most recently with President-elect Barack Hussein Obama's carrying the state over Sen. John Sidney McCain III. Many pundits speak of this as if it were a foregone conclusion, like it had always been that way.
That is where they are so very wrong.
A look at presidential elections shows that New Jersey was quite a "red" state, for a long time, and recently. Let's look:

1948-Dewey over Truman.

1952-Eisenhower over Stevenson.

1956-Eisenhower over Stevenson.

1960-Kennedy over Nixon.

1964-Johnson over Goldwater.

1968-Nixon over Humphrey.

1972-Nixon over McGovern.

1976-Ford over Carter.

1980-Reagan over Carter.

1984-Reagan over Mondale.

1988-Bush over Dukakis.

1992-Clinton over Bush.

1996-Clinton over Dole.

2000-Gore over Bush.

2004-Kèrry over Bush.

2008-Obama over McCain.

What we see is, since the end of World War II, Republican presidential nominees carried New Jersey in all but two contests (1960 and '64) up until 1988. Nine out of 11 races, even where the G. O. P. nominee lost nationally. (Dewey and Ford)
That changed in 1992, when William Jefferson Davis Clinton narrowly carried New Jersey over President George H. W. Bush. Many at the time believed that the independent candidacy of H. Ross Perot was the spoiler, indeed, Perot's total vote far exceeded Clinton's plurality over Bush. Many Republicans believed that had Perot not been in the race, a large slice of his votes would have gone to Bush, handing him New Jersey's 15 electoral votes.
In '96, however, Clinton beat Dole outright. Perot ran that year, but his total was much smaller and would not have helped Dole had Perot not been in the race. No Republican has carried the state since then.
So what happened? We might have blamed 92 on Perot, but nothing else. Let's analyze this.
Changing Demographics: The population of New Jersey has changed over the past twenty years. Many who voted Republican in the past have left the state for more hospitable locations. A sizeable percentage of the new residents are immigrants and first-generation Americans, many of whom vote Democratic. That some illegal aliens may also be voting only compounds this.
Changing Democrats: I believe it to be no coincidence that this political shift has coincided with the rise of such political mega-bosses like George Norcross., as well as hyper-rich power-brokers like the Bozo-coiffed Governor Corzine. Where once their activity remained confined to the cities, these operators spread Democratic money and influence around the state through a process called wheeling.* That this effort has borne fruit for the Democrats can be seen in their taking over such formerly red counties as Bergen and Passaic.
A Weak State GOP Organization: Has Nero been fiddling while Rome burned here? Possibly. There hasn't really been much effort on the state level to build the party. Playing defense and retreat only gets you one thing: Defeat.

What is to be done? Well, by the time the next Presidential election rolls around it will be too late. We can't wish and hope that the next one will win Jersey. It's time to start now. Party building. If the state GOP leadership isn't up to the task, maybe it's time we got someone who is.

*Of course, with the Democrats, down is up and up is down and wheeling isn't wheeling, so I guess the money isn't really wheeled. Or something.

TRIVIA

Who was Frederick von Nieda?

WHY McCAIN LOST

By Michael Reagan

Barack Obama is president-elect of the United States because the Republican Party and John McCain handed him the presidential election on a silver platter.

The Republican Party and the Bush White House walked away from Republican ideals and they walked away from Republican values.

George Bush allowed the Republican Congress to overspend in the first six years of his administration without once using the veto pen, blindsided the conservative Republican members of Congress on many occasions, and walked away from the base of his party on immigration reform and other issues such as Medicare and No Child Left Behind.

He refused to sit down and break bread with the conservative members of his own party on Capitol Hill, yet believed that he could break bread with the liberal Democrats in Washington the way he did with the Democrats in Austin, Texas. And when he discovered it didn't work in Washington, it failed to stop him from trying and trying and trying over again what was obviously impossible.

Finally, the coup de grace was Dick Cheney's endorsement of John McCain in the waning days of the campaign, which gave Barack Obama the final nail to put in the coffin of McCain's campaign, which was striving mightily to distance him from the Bush administration.

Then there was McCain's campaign itself. It was the worst campaign since Bob Dole's on the Republican side, and the best campaign since Ronald Reagan’s on the Democrat side.

The McCain campaign was a campaign out of the 20th century, while the Democrats were running a campaign in the 21st century.

We need to understand that this was not a referendum on Reaganomics and Ronald Reagan. This was a referendum on George Bush, and Bush-ism, and Bush’s lack of leadership.

John McCain wouldn't stand up against the Democrats in Washington D.C. on the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac scandals, against expanding government, a $700 billion bailout, and going against the traditional values of conservative Republicans.

The economic collapse was the Democrats’ fault. Yet John McCain never bothered going after them on that. He let the burglars walk away with the loot because those were his friends, and with George Bush failed to point the finger of blame at the people who caused the financial collapse that has plunged the nation into a certain recession. Bush had the bully pulpit but failed to use it, and the Democrats walked away scot-free.

Shockingly, John McCain failed to use the most potent weapon in his arsenal -- the culpability of Barack Obama and his friends in the wholesale looting of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that led to the current debacle. McCain had the goods, but wouldn't exploit them.

The McCain campaign made inadequate use of Gov. Sarah Palin, who had enormous crowd appeal. A lot of people voted for John McCain because of Sarah Palin. There were bigger a crowds because of Sarah Palin. Yet some of the functionaries in the McCain campaign are trying to point the finger at her for McCain's defeat.

John McCain lost because of his lack of a clear message. He needed more than the fact that he is a maverick. His answer to the economic crisis was a $300 billion bailout for delinquent mortgagees. He was offering welfarism, while Barack Obama was offering socialism.

People laugh at me when I tell them the difference between Republicans and Democrats is that Republicans take a week longer to embrace communism.

This was not a referendum on Ronald Reagan. As a matter of fact, my dad might well have voted for Barak Obama just based on what he was seeing his party doing.

Finally, I hope that when Barack Obama was making elaborate and extravagant promises about what he was going to do, he was flat-out lying.

I hope Barack Obama will not be what he has promised to be. I hope he doesn't have a civilian security force. I hope he doesn't raise my taxes. I hope he doesn't spread the wealth. I hope he doesn't raise taxes on corporate America. I hope he looks at nuclear power. I hope he allows us to drill. I hope that there will be no revival of the fairness doctrine.


Conservative commentator Michael Reagan is the eldest son of the late President Ronald Wilson Reagan. His website is The Reagan Exchange.

WAITING...

The sharks are circling.
Since election night, both Republicans and Democrats have been awaiting the answer. Will John Curley take a seat on as part of a GOP majority on the Board of Chosen Freeholders in January, or will Amy "Hammerhead" Mallet form a part of a new Democratic majority on the Board of County Commissioners?
Right now Hammerhead is 18 votes ahead of Curley, but provisional ballots haven't been counted yet.
At stake: The future of Monmouth County.

BEST OF LUCK, SENATOR

Barry Goldwater, of The Voice of Reason, joins Monmouth Bull Moose's Teddy Roosevelt in retiring from the Monmouth GOP Blogosphere.
Sen. Goldwater appeared on the scene about a year and a half ago, and has run a very effective blog, credited with exposing Sen. Ellen Kärcher as just another political hack. That's former Sen. Ellen Kärcher. Sen. Goldwater had a lot to do with sending Kärcher back to the Christmas tree farm.
Barry's most recent target was the Democratic administration in Matawan, who made a mess of that town's finances and will now be going home.
Sen. Goldwater has indicated that he will still be lurking. We hope he remains an active participant.
Best of luck in whatever you do, Senator Goldwater.

IT AIN'T OVER TILL IT'S OVER

Most of us Republicans don't have much time for blogging right now. We're busy walking, or calling, hoping to get in that one more block or one more call before it gets too late and people start getting pissed off.
The major GOP blogs here in Monmouth County have all run posts promoting our great candidates and exposing the Democratic Party and its candidates' unsavory connections. We're partisan blogs, after all; it's what we do. We have attempted to cover the pertinent issues of the campaign.
We now find ourselves on the eve of the quadrennial Presidential election. Sadly, here in New Jersey it seems that a Republican carrying our state is a distant memory. (More on that in a subsequent post.) Still, John McCain and Sarah Palin should carry Monmouth County. With the exception of Chris Smith's Fourth Congressional District, the congressional districts are gerrymandered to the point of extreme difficulty for Republicans.
But still we work.
Make no mistake. On the County level, our party faces an existential challenge. The Democrats may be running a pair of stiffs for county commissioner, but that makes them all the more dangerous if they are elected, as they will be mere handmaidens of the big, urban Democrat bosses like George Norcross. Scumbags.
So, we must neither grow discouraged nor too comfortable. We must work till the polls close to ensure that every Republican has gotten out to vote. Friendly D's and I's, too. The Democrats may be playing games in certain towns, we must overwhelm that with our numbers.
This isn't over till the polls close. It's up to all of us to make sure that tomorrow night's party at Southgate Manor isn't a wake.
Now, let's all get back to work.

HAMMERHEAD and VERY SILENT GLENN

Is Camden County Amy Mallet's idea of "where Democrats are doing a better job governing than Republicans?" Gloucester? Middlesex?

Last month Barry Goldwater wrote about county commissioner candidate Amy "Hammerhead" Mallet and her campaign finances. The good senator raised some issues that should be of concern to all Republicans of good will.

So we directed the Honest Abe Research Foundation to look into this matter in Hammerhead's ELEC reports. It's scary enough to think it's still Halloween.

Amy is like a shark and a shark is fishy and so is Amy.

Going back to the 2003 primary campaign, when Mallet was running with Senate candidate Gordon Gemma, we find a number of out-of-county contributions, and not just any out-of-county contributions. Amongst the usual pack of labor unions and trial lawyers are several wheeled* contributions from other county Democratic organizations.

Here they are:

Burlington County Democratic Committee: A $7,200.00 contribution dated June 2, 2003.

Camden County Democratic Committee: This is The Big One, the home base of George Norcross himself. If Norcross is Brezhnev, Camden is Moscow. A $14,400.00 contribution, also dated June 2, 2003.

The Leaders Fund: A Democratic PAC based in Cherry Hill Township and led by former Camden County Democratic Chairman David A. Luthman. Luthman is an attorney with the Parker McCay Law Firm, which ios headed by Philip Norcross, a brother of George Norcross.. Cherry Hill Township is in Camden County. A $14,400.00 contribution, again dated June 2, 2003. Among contributors to The Leaders Fund are developer Jack Morris with a February 24, 2003 contribution of $6,000.00 and his business partner Steve Goldin, who contributed $1,000.00 on the same day.

New Directions Through Responsible Leadership: Former Senate President John Lynch's PAC. A $14,400.00 contribution, dated June 10, 2003. Lynch will become eligible for release from federal prison on November 13, 2009. Contributors to New Directions include Willard of Jenkintown, PA, who apparently goes by only one name and contributed $2,500.00 on March 7, 2003. On that same date New Directions also received $7,200.00 from the Columbia Group, $7,200.00 from Edgewood Properties Inc., and $7,200.00 from Smith Street Properties Inc.

Monmouth Council of Democratic Leaders: A PAC connected to former Red Bank Mayor Edward McKenna and his sycophants, toadies and lackies. A $2,200.00 contribution dated June 15, 2003. Amy Mallet herself personally contributed $250.00 to this PAC on September 16, 2003, as did County Commissioner John "Flippy" D'Amico. That means that they support this PAC and think it's a good idea, campers.

Middlesex County Democratic Organization: These guys provided the Gemma-Mallet team with three in-kind contributions totaling $6,607.00, specifically they footed the bill for $515.00 in bus transportation, $342.00 for lunches (Lynch Lunch?☺), and $5,750.00 for GOTV walkers.

Gloucester County Democratic Executive Committee: If Camden is Moscow, Gloucester is St. Petersburg. Gloucester is the home base of State Senator Freeholder Director Steve Sweeney, a cog in the Norcross Machine. A $14,400.00 contribution, dated October 24, 2003.

Red Bank Democratic Municipal Committee: Surprisingly, this is actually within Monmouth County, but the Red Bank Dems are a vehicle for wheeling. The people that John Curley has been fighting. Three contributions totaling $59,900.00, including $19,400.00 on June 15, 2003, $26,100.00 undated and $14,400.00 on November 23, 2003. Imagine if your local GOP organization had that kind of bucks!

One would ask why would Hammerhead and Very Silent Glenn would run such a lightweight campaign. Where are their stands on the issues? I mean, it would appear that their platform is to ban the Colts Neck Historic House Tour, rename the Board of Chosen Freeholders and enact reforms already enacted by the Republican majority.

Looking at Amy Mallet's campaign finances, it's obvious. When politicians are light on ideas and heavy on dirty contributors, it's plain what they would do if elected: Exactly what they're told. Amy Mallet was financed in 2003 by urban political bosses who's political agendas are diametrically opposite to the interests of the good people of Monmouth County. They invested megamegamegabucks into her campaign, and only a primary at that. They would not do that if they didn't believe she was a dutiful soldier. And Very Silent Glenn? Well, he's just been, well, very silent.

Something else to think about. There are people out there who would vote for fire ants if they were running on the Democratic ticket. Fortunately not a lot here in Monmouth County, but this year there are ACORN - type groups (if not ACORN itself) working in several Monmouth County communities to register as many voters like that as possible. Possibly more than once, and possibly illegal aliens. With a Democrat in the Commissioner of Registration's office, we cannot count on these dubious registrations being culled. All these voters need to know is that a candidate is a Democrat.

It is important, then, to get out our vote to prevent a Democratic takeover of the Board of Chosen Freeholders. Tell your friends. Bring a friend or more than one friend to the polls with you on Tuesday.

*Of course, with the Democrats, like in a Lewis Carroll story, down is up and up is down and wheeling isn't wheeling, so I guess the money isn't really wheeled. Also like Lewis Carroll, when John Kennedy's presidential campaign was in 1960, Middletown Democratic Boss Joseph "King" Caliendo campaigned in the 1961 Kennedy campaign.

THE ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION FIASCO V

"I don't know how you can put a price tag on the lives on Monmouth County residents."
...Sheriff Kim Guadagno


Illegal aliens are not in the shadows, they're in our face.
Nowhere in Monmouth County was that more evident than in front of the Sheriff's office yesterday, where illegals and their enablers held a protest march opposing Sheriff Kim Guadagno's application to participate in the federal 287 (g) program. Sometimes you know you are doing the right thing by virtue of the critics you attract, and Guadagno has flushed out such enabling groups as the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and Casa Freehold.
The Sheriff promised to participate in this program during her campaign last year; it would essentially deputize several of her officers to investigate the immigration status of prisoners at the County Jail, and provide training to perform these duties. Inmates found to be here illegally would then be subject to a federal detainer at the completion of their County time.
Illegal immigration advocates stridently oppose such a program. If an inmate's immigration status slips through the cracks, they can be released at the end of their term, or bail out if awating trial. Then they're in the wind.
The Sheriff's Department already investigates inmates' criminal status. There is no point in releasing an offender if they are wanted by other jurisdictions. Even visitors to the institution are checked for active warrants.
Too, there are already inmates with immigration holds. Just check out http://www.datauniverse.com/ for more information. So this program would just close a loophole in the system. Guadagno has stated that this program would only be in place in the jail, so only those incarcerated would be investigated. The County Jail should not become a "Sanctuary City", even if some municipalities do.
Many of those attending yesterday's protest were members of the Latino community. Many feel that Latinos would be targeted by this program. While many currently in jail on immigration violations are Latino, many are not. A sampling of those non-Latino inmates includes Abass AbuBakar, Malek Afzal Adal, Deborah Allen, Kuan Chun Han, Gazi Hossain, Mohammed Hossain, Sergei Konduktorov, Mohammed Qureshi. So it's not just a case of going after the "lawnmower man".
Sheriff Guadagno deserves our support in her endeavor.

JOE THE PLUMBER IN '10?

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WHEELING IN MIDDLETOWN

Art Gallagher posts a press release by Middletown Township Committee candidate Tony Fiore exposing wheeling* by Middlesex County based engineering firm CME Associates through a bogus Ocean County PAC (OC-PAC) into the Middletown Democratic Executive Committee, led by party boss Joseph "King" Caliendo.
So, I guess we know now that CME will be township engineer if the Dems take control in Middletown. I wonder if all the papers will pick this up?
Other recipients of OC-PAC's generosity include the Democratic sheriff of Mercer County and the Democratic mayor of Los Angeles, California.

*Of course, with the Democrats, down is up and up is down and wheeling isn't wheeling, so I guess the money isn't really wheeled. Or something.

ANOTHER UNION COUNTY CONNECTION

Is Union County the Democrats' idea of "where Democrats are doing a better job governing than Republicans?"
Apparently the Matawan Democrats believe so.
Recently the Voice of Reason has run a series on the fiasco that the Democratic council majority has transformed that borough into. Read it here, here and here. The behavior of their governing body seemed odd, even for Democrats, so we directed the Honest Abe Research Foundation to look into this.
Wow.
The Matawan Democrats' ELEC Report shows the usual contributions from the seemingly bottomless pit of money that the unions have. The very generous Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 9 from Manalapan is there with $4,500.00; indeed labor unions make up a clear majority of the funds reported. We still don't get what these unions' interest in these campaigns is.
But what really stuck out was a $1,000.00 contribution from the Election Fund of J. Christian Bollwage, dated September 17th. Abe, you ask, who is J. Christian Bollwage? He is the Democratic Mayor of Elizabeth. Elizabeth is in Union County.
And the wheel goes round.
Union County democrats have stuck their nose into Monmouth County campaigns before. They are just one of County Democratic Boss Victor Scudiery's many sources statewide. But what is their interest in a diminutive borough like Matawan?
Is it because they are extraordinarily civic-minded Americans who have a deep, abiding interest in local pols doing their jobs of serving their constituency? Might it be that they just love participating in the political process?
Is Union County the Democrats' idea of "where Democrats are doing a better job governing than Republicans?"
Well?

THOSE PRESS ENDORSEMENTS II

"We believe voters would be better served by retaining the 3-2 Republican majority..."
...Asbury Park Press Editorial


We knew they could do it. Today, the Asbury Park Press endorsed Director Lillian Burry and John Curley for freeholders over Democrats Amy Mallet (Who is like a shark) and Very Silent Glenn Mason for county commissioners. This marks the first time in many years that they have endorsed Republicans for the Board.

In the opening paragraph, the Press finally admits that the corruption of the Bid Rig era is a thing of the past, but they seem to believe that having two Democrats on the Board is the reason for the reforms of the past three years. We beg to differ on that. Between the 2004 and 2006 election cycle there was a 100% turnover of Board members. While Republicans largely replaced Republicans during that time, we saw a much more reform-minded calibre of freeholder take office.

Many reforms were spearheaded by Freeholder Anna Little, a conservative Republican. Indeed, a case could be made that it was a return to basic Republican principles that brought the Board of Chosen Freeholders back on track.

Simply having Democrats on the Board is not in itself a recipe for reform. The Press mentions curmudgeonly County Counsel Malcolm Carton as a vestige of the "good ol' boys network" that formerly dominated the Board. We will remind the reader that it was County Commissioner John "Flippy" D'Amico who sponsored the resolution appointing Carton back in 1988. It was D'Amico's hedging on the issue of reappointing Carton during the 2007 campaign that earned him the sobriquet "Flippy". And McMorrow's claim to fame seems to have been to follow Little's lead.

We are very pleased that the Press has finally seen fit to endorse Republicans for the Board of Chosen Freeholders. Indeed, to have endorsed the Democrats would have been to play right into the hands of the Norcross political family they spoke of in their endorsement of Mayor Myers for Congress over Sen. Adler.

THOSE PRESS ENDORSEMENTS

OK, campers, once again the Asbury Park Press has begun its series of candidate endorsement editorials, and so far it's a mixed bag.
They began on Sunday the 19th with an endorsement of Barack Hussein Obama, Jr. and his faithful sidekick Robinette, which was basically just a rehash of Democratic talking points. Nothing else to say here. I mean, Purcell actually did better than the APP on that regard.
Then on Monday, the APP began delving into the various races for the House of Representatives in the area with a hearty and resounding endorsement of Congressman Frank Pallone over Judge Bob McLeod for an eleventh term. A sign of character in an elected official is the breaking with his party from time to time on certain important issues, and in Congress Pallone has failed miserably there. While in the State Senate, Pallone earned a reputation as a conservative Democrat on certain issues, such as abortion. Within six months of his election to Congress, he took a hard left turn and hasn't looked back since. When then-State Senator Pallone first ran for Congress back in 1988 a slogan used by his opponent's (Assemblyman Joe Azzolina) campaign was Frank Pallone: 5 years of press; the ocean's still a mess. That still holds true today, only now it's 25 years of press. I encourage my readers to peruse the comments posted after the Press editorial.
On Tuesday, the Press printed an endorsement of incumbent Congressman Rush Holt for reelection over Holmdel Township Committeeman Alan Bateman. Holt is basically a carbon copy of Pallone, a strong follower of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the rest of the Democratic House Leadership. He doesn't really offer much to Monmouth County. Again, be sure to read the comments.
Yesterday (Wednesday) it began to get interesting. The Asbury Park Press endorsed a Republican! Medford Mayor Chris Myers actually got the endorsement over state Sen. John Adler, D-Camden, a cog in the Norcross machine, to succeed retiring Congressman Jim Saxton. Although this district doesn't cover Monmouth County, I'm referencing this endorsement because of what the Press had to say:
"Adler, whose political career has been scripted by Camden County political boss George Norcross, is part of a long-entrenched system that has allowed corruption to run rampant in New Jersey. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which conducts confirmation hearings on key gubernatorial appointees and state judges, he has signed off on or run interference for a "who's who" of unqualified party hacks. Among those vetted under his watch: former Attorneys General Peter C. Harvey and Zulima Farber and Supreme Court Justice Roberto Rivera-Soto."
The Norcross reference is interseting. The Press has repeatedly endorsed Democrats for freeholder whose campaigns have been heavily funded by Norcross' lieutenants like Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts. In view of that sordid history, it will be very interesting indeed to see if they follow the same pattern and endorse the Democratic candidates for freeholder this year.
Today they endorsed another Republican, veteran Congressman Chris Smith, the dean of the New Jersey House delegation. In spite of the Press' assertions otherwise, Smith is a conservative, and has proven that you need not be a liberal in the mold of Christie Whitman to succeed as a Republican in New Jersey. He will diverge from his party's line on issues of importance to his constituency in the 4th District. That's called representation. Something that both Pallone and Holt could do more of.
It will be interesting to see who will be endorsed in the race for U. S. Senate. Will the APP endorse Democrat Frank Lautenberg (Who is reminiscent of some of the former Soviet dictators like Yuri V. Andropov or Konstantin U. Chernenko!) or Republican Dick Zimmer?
And, in light of their rightful criticism of Adler's connections to the Norcross political family, will the Press endorse Freeholder Director Lillian Burry and John Curley, or Democrats Amy Mallet (Who is like a shark) and Very Silent Glenn Mason?

ABOUT THE DEMS' CAMPAIGN BUCKS...

Great research has been done by Art Gallagher and Barry Goldwater into the campaign finances of Democratic freeholder (or is that county commissioner?) candidates Amy Mallet and Very Silent Glenn Mason. They aptly point out the money wheeled* from such sources as Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D-Middlesex), as well as a passel of out of county labor unions. This mirrors a post I made back in 2006 revealing unions and wheeling back then.
I wonder now as then the reason for all the labor bucks. The bulk of county employees are represented by two unions: Communications Workers of America Local 1034 (Carla Katz) represents the Public Works and Park System workers, and Policemen's Benevolent Association Local 240 represents the Corrections officers. So far, neither public employee union has contributed to the Dems' war chest this year. Most of the unions donating to the Democrats are not public employee unions. Back in 2006 a comment was posted that the unions were merely contributing to "pro-labor" candidates, but that sounds pretty weak. So why all the bucks?
The money from the lawyers is pretty obvious. Look at the names of the contributing lawyers, and look at who gets County Counsel if the Democrats get the majority, and see if you don't find a match.
As to the out of county political contributions like Wisniewski or Speaker Joe Roberts, that's wheeling in its most basic form. It's just what Democrats do.

*Of course, with the Monmouth County Democrats wheeling isn't wheeling, so I guess the money isn't really wheeled. Or something.

REMEMBER HOWELL?

There was a time that the mere mention of Howell Township on this blog would elicit a "Howellanche" of comments. Indeed, there were those who would even steer a totally unrelated thread to Howell topics. Lately, Howell seems to have dropped off the face of the earth.

Actually, Howell is very much a part of Monmouth County, and with Middletown is key to a victory next month for Lillian Burry and John Curley. As quiet as things have been, there is in fact a local election going on there.

Mayor Joe DiBella has chosen not to run for reelection to another term. As many will remember, he was twice a candidate for freeholder in 2006. That year also saw an unsuccessful effort to recall the mayor. Joe weathered those storms, and we believe he goes out a winner this year.
The local GOP ticket this year is former Planning Board member Russell Bohlin for mayor and Susan O'Brien Wynalek for council. Wynalek replaces Planning Board Chairman Paul "PaulyRXman" Schneider on the ticket, who had withdrawn. They have joined the blogosphere, and can be visited at http://www.russandsueforhowell.blogspot.com/.
The independents are Councilman Robert Walsh for mayor and Susan Schroeder Clark for council.
Once again, there are no Democrats on the ballot for local office. This is the third consecutive local election in which the Howell Dems have not participated.

PURCELL'S BAAAAAAAAAACK...

Not too long ago, Courier publisher and Democratic Party operative Jim Purcell stopped blogging at The Inside Clamdigger; he also discontinued his column in his paper. Seemingly as a result of strong criticism by Art Gallagher of More Monmouth Musings. The blogging is now done by "Courier Reporter" and Purcell was replaced by columnist Somdatta Sengupta, a longtime Courier staffer. Until this week.

Purcell's back.

In this week's (Issue of Oct. 9th) column, in a newsworthy bit of new news, Purcell implores us all to vote Democratic.

He opens with a criticism of President George Walker Bush, and says he cannot vote for Sen. John Sidney McCain to replace him. Although Purcell doesn't mention the Illinois Senator by name, I would presume that he wants us all to vote for Barak Hussein Obama. And Boy Wonder Robinette for veep.

Then he goes on to Monmouth County:

"In Monmouth County, it is time for the Monmouth County Republican Organization to not be in control for a while, in my opinion. Corruption is rampant and only thinly concealed from public view. The corruption is institutional and spans the county."

Wanna have that conversation now, Jim? Where is the corruption of which you speak? Don't bother trotting out the Rob Clifton contribution story. That one lost credibility when you gave Bill Barham a pass for accepting the same amount from the same contributor and didn't return it, not to mention that you chose to ignore the Aberdeen Democrats' acceptance of contributions from that town's train station developer, even when the documentation was handed to you.

Westlake? Puh-leeze. At the end of the day, a Democratic tax board appointment by the governor that had to be vetted by the Democratic County Boss. That's Victor Scudiery, Jim. Maybe you've heard of him?

Bid Rig? Jim, a lot of the perpetrators were your friends. John Merla, Ray O'Grady and Harry Larrison, among others. When others expressed revulsion that these individuals could get involved in such corruption, you stood by your men. BTW, your chairman, Scudiery, said in 2005 they were entrapped. But then he also wrote that convicted federal felon Frank Abate was "honorable and dedicated."

Purcell then goes on about Peter Carton. Yaaaaawwwwn. Alright, we know you don't like the guy, already. Get over it, Jim, this is getting to be black helicopter stuff.

Do you really think that the Democrats don't have their own "Pete Carton" waiting in the wings for the Dems to take a majority. Come on. Just take a look at their ELEC reports. It's mostly labor unions and lawyers.

He jumps back to the county:

"The family members and friends, not to mention friends of friends, of Monmouth Republicans are so insinuated within the government's infrastructure that the notion of 'best person for the job' is simply quaint and perhaps nostalgic most times, but certainly not grounded in reality."

All righty then. And just who might these family members and friends be. Names and titles, Jim. It's easy to make the accusation, but to make it stick you need facts, Jim. Remember facts?

Purcell closes with a discussion of Middletown. Naturally, he wants Democrats in office there, too. Nothing really there to see.

Which leads me to ask the great unanswered question of Campaign '08, originally posed by Art Gallagher of More Monmouth Musings, also asked by Barry Goldwater at The Voice of Reason and by yours truly at this blog, and never answered yet: "Can anyone tell me of a county in New Jersey where Democrats are doing a better job governing than Republicans are doing in Monmouth County?"

I think I know the answer, or rather, why no Democrat has answered yet. Or will answer.

With the Democrats it's not about reform or good government, it's about power. We've seen where out of county interests have funded the Monmouth County Democrats, particularly Camden and Union County Democrats like George Norcross and Raymond Lesniak. For a look at how the Democrats have been running things in Union County, check out the blog of the Union County Watchdog Association, http://www.countywatchers.com/. Do we want our great county to be like Union? Is that the Democrats' idea of "where Democrats are doing a better job governing than Republicans?"

Well?

HOW DID WE ALL MISS THIS ONE???

Please read this Star-Ledger article from back in May about a former Marlboro mayor's guilty plea in Federal Court for income tax evasion. No, it's not Matthew Scannapieco this time, it's a mug named Morton Salkind, who was that township's Democratic mayor some 35 years ago, and is said to have established relationships with developers which set in motion the events that transformed Marlboro from a pastoral farming community into the poster child for suburban sprawl that it is today. Salkind also served a term in the Assembly back in the 70's. He was defeated by Marie Muhler in 1975. Salkind's sentencing is scheduled for January; he could get up to two years in prison. I always knew this guy was dirty.
Chris Christie nails another one.

DEMOCRATIC EVIL WIZARD

Monmouth County's Democratic Party has a number of high-profile power-brokers. Chairman Victor Scudiery and Middletown Party Boss Joseph "King" Caliendo come to mind. But did you know that they have an evil wizard, too? OK, not some guy with a gown and a wand, the wizard monicker came from a Manalapan related comment on More Monmouth Musings by one called Trevanian. I'm talking about a very mysterious, behind-the-scenes Democratic political boss.
Norman Kauff.
Kauff has never held an elected office that I'm aware of. A lawyer, he has held several no-bid professional contracts in a number of towns in Western Monmouth and the Bayshore where he wields a lot of influence. He has been of controversy in several of these towns. Read The Middle Road from back in '03, when Kauff had an apparent no-show appointment in Hazlet, who's Democratic mayor seemed to be clueless as to Kauff's actual function and duties.
A post last year at Da Truth Squad appears to bear out the no-show thing, this time in Manalapan. And Aberdeener, from Kauff's home base of operation, has an entire category dedicated to Norman Kauff.

He receives a public pension, which appears to be the result of a process called multiple job holding, or double dipping.
For some reason, Kauff has evaded coverage in the local media. No Courier exposé here. No write-ups in the Asbury Park Press, The Transcript or the Independent. As low-key as he is, he has been a power, not only in Hazlet, Manalapan or Aberdeen, but in Marlboro, Matawan and Keyport too. On the County level, he is a trusted lieutenant of Boss Scudiery.

"PLUGS" ROBINETTE

DON'T SAY OBAMA

This is over a year old, but it's funny as hell.

MIDDLETOWN: THE NEW HOWELL

Middletown Township is Monmouth County's largest municipality in population; it's also right up there in land area. It stretches from the tip of Sandy Hook all the way to Lincroft, nearly on the doorstep of Western Monmouth.
Politically, it is a must-win in order to carry the county.
But all is not right in the Middletonian behemoth. A long-simmering party split has in recent years reached a slow boil, with the Democrats under local boss Joe "King" Caliendo benefiting in the process, and by currency, the county Dems.
What once was fought out in the primary and forgotten by Labor Day has now become a full-time pursuit. The two factions would get together, with Joe Azzolina hosting Pete Carton's local GOP Headquarters on Joe's property on Route 35. That's all a distant memory now; the HQ building has been bulldozed for lo these several years now.
Caliendo has benefitted big time in the last two years, with two of his Democrats being elected to the Township Committee. One more and all the GOP infighting will be moot.
Last year, things got really bizzare. Joe Azzolina, the longtime Republican legislator and former municipal chair, publicly backed the local Democrats in a mailer. And, from the other faction, Planning Board Chairperson Judith Stanley-Coleman backed a write-in candidate in Highlands, and is said to be supporting the local Democrats there this year. And that's not even in Middletown!
Wow! You just can't make this stuff up, campers!
With all these Republicans backing Democrats, it's no surprise that the Democrats are making gains.
In spite of a political scene that seems like a cross between The Jerry Springer Show and the bar scene from Star Wars, the local GOP seems to have been doing a pretty decent job governing the township, which makes it all the more imperative to maintain the Republican majority there, as well as keeping the vote pluralities high for the freeholders and top of the ticket.
I'll close with Art Gallagher's poignant question, which Democrats hate to be asked and can't answer: "Where in New Jersey are Democrats doing a better job governing than Republicans are doing in Middletown and Monmouth County?"

PURCELL DISSES MONMOUTH's DIVERSITY

In his column in last week's (August 21st) Courier, publisher Jim Purcell laments Monmouth County's lack of "diversity."
Say what?!
What does he mean by the PC term diversity anyway? Monmouth County has about as much diversity as the next county. Yes, it's a predominantly white county, but not exclusively.
Many different communities make up our county. Holmdel has sizeable East Asian and South Asian communities. Long Branch, Neptune and Asbury Park have large African-American communities, as do Red Bank, Tinton Falls and Freehold Borough; smaller black communities exist in Matawan, Keyport and Aberdeen. Even Middletown has the enclave of Hillside Park. Howell has the Kalmuck Mongol community, one of the largest Buddhist communities in New Jersey.
Freehold and Red Bank, among other towns, have large Latino communities.
Even white communities are not all the same. Marlboro, Manalapan, Aberdeen and Ocean have large Jewish populations, whereas the southern shore towns, centering on Spring Lake, have been dubbed the "Irish Riviera."
I could go on and on. But I think you get the point. We're all Americans here. The things that unite us outnumber those that divide.
Sounding more like The Big Professor, Purcell also sounds a drum beaten by many on the left:
" Indeed, in many ways this 'conversation' about race will end one day. In this country, by 2050, the majority of the population in the United States will no longer be white. The majority of voters will be something other than white, and so the whole issue of race will be a lot plainer for some folks to grasp—because they'll have to."
This sounds like typical liberal "drive-by" media stuff. Promoting "get-even-ism" when whites are a minority, the left fails to take into account the fact that America has absorbed many peoples of all colors and from all continents and made them into... Americans.
And Americans work out our differences.

Biden: My State Was a Slave State

Robinette in his own words:

SPEAKING OF APOLOGIES...

The vast editorial staff here at the Monmouth County Republican Blog has been following very intently the controversy a-brewin' over More Monmouth Musings' Art Gallagher's attempt to start a discussion on race relations. Recently, Art ran a post in which he reprinted an article by Jeffery Lord in The American Spectator, Democrats: The Missing Years. That reminded us of a post we did back in February linking to an editorial in The Trentonian.
This week, the Democratic Party is poised to nominate Barack Hussein Obama, the first African American to be nominated by a major party, and Joseph Robinette Biden, who likes Obama because he's a "clean" African American. This would be a great opportunity for them to apologize as a party for slavery, Jim Crow laws, etc.
With the Democratic National Convention in session this week, we were going to repost the link, but found it no longer active, so we are reprinting the editorial here.
*************************************************************************************
Published in The Trentonian, Friday, February 1, 2008


Speaking of apologies...
Exuding righteousness, Democrats who control the N. J. legislature recently led an effort to proffer an official state apology for slavery. the apology presumably included within its sweeping mea-culpa ambit even those many New Jersey citizens whose forbears arrived in this country after slavery had been abolished and thus had nothing remotely to do with it. The New Jersey apology, at least, made no exceptions for this extensive category.
The legislature's heralded and hailed effort leads us to wonder aloud: Would these righteousness-exuding New Jersey Democrats now be willing to position themselves in the forefront of an initiative to apologize for their own national party's long and ignoble history of racism? Not that the Republican Party's own history on matters of race is unexceptionable, mind you. Far, far from it. But the GOP's record on racial issues can't remotely approach the out-and-out odiousness, spanning decades, of the Democratic Party's.
This sorry, shameful record has been disinterred in economist Bruce Bartlett's book, "Wrong on Race: The Democratic Party's Buried Past." So New Jersey's Democratic legislators would be spared the burden of research to support a formal party apology as a plank in the upcoming national convention platform. In an article in The American Spectator recently, Jeffrey Lord, one-time Reagan White House aide, suggested such a platform. Lord is, of course, a conservative polemicist and -- Democrats might understandably object -- a partisan troublemaker. Yet facts are facts, as it's often said, and Lord's summation of the Democratic racial record is not something easily waved aside. Certainly the record is nothing Democratic legislators can shrug off as ancient history or water over the dam -- especially not after having ostentatiously championed the slavery apology.
Here's a brief sampling of the Democratic Party's racial record:

• Six national party platforms, 1840-1860, spoke out vehemently in support of slavery.
• The national party platform in 1864 declared the Union's military efforts to quell the slavery-supporting Confederacy a "failure" and demanded negotiations with a view toward at least a partial acceptance of slavery.
• At the 1900 national convention, the Democratic Party remained silent on the issue of race as de facto and de jure discrimination leached like toxic waste into all corners of America -- especially in the solidly Democratic South. (The GOP platform that year, in contrast, stated that "the plain purpose" of the 15th Amendment to the Constitution was to "prevent discrimination on account of race or color in regulating the elective franchise." The Republican platform added: "Devices of state government ... to avoid the purpose of this amendment ... should be condemned.")
• Four Democratic Party national platforms (1908-1920) were silent on the issues of lynching, segregation and voting-rights suppression of African Americans. (The GOP platforms in those years addressed these issues.)
• The 1924 Democratic National Convention, held in New York City, defeated a proposed platform plank condemning Ku Klux Klan violence. The party confab was dubbed with fully justifiable derision the Democrats' "Klanbake." (Noteworthy local angle: In celebration of the platform victory, 10,000 pointed-hooded Klansmen rallied across the river in New Jersey, cavorting triumphantly around burning crosses.)

It seems almost like a late hit or piling-on, but we'll risk throwing in a mention that such notable race-baiters as Bull Connors and Orval Faubus and George Wallace and Lester Maddox were all stalwart Democrats. And, oh, yes, Arkansas Sen. J. William Fulbright (the furrowed-brow foreign policy intellectual and Bill Clinton's hero) was unwaveringly segregationist to the very end of his political career and a signer of "The Southern Manifesto."
Do we hear a motion for a Democratic Party apology?
--The Trentonian

HOW DID WE GET HERE?

Joe Oxley has been the County Chairman for nearly a month and has been getting good reviews pretty much across the board. Some readers may wonder how we, the Monmouth County Republican Party, got to where we are today.

Here's how.

Our great party has a long history in power in the county. We dominated on both the county and local levels, where even Asbury Park and Long Branch were once G. O. P. strongholds. Democrats were not able to make inroads until the 1960's, when they elected James Howard to Congress, Paul Kiernan as Sheriff and Eugene Bedell as Freeholder. Kiernan's son, Paul Kiernan, Jr., would nearly oust longtime G. O. P. leader J. Russell Woolley as County Clerk. While Bedell was ousted after one term, Howard and Kiernan would hold office for many years; Howard until his death in 1988. Otherwise, the Republican grip would remain solid until the 1970's.

Woolley's successor as county chairman, County Clerk Benjamin H. Danskin, would be faced with an unprecedented existential challenge to the Republican Party on all levels: The Watergate scandal. While no Monmouth Republicans were involved in Watergate, multitudes were swept from office during the 1973, 1974 and 1975 elections, including Danskin himself as County Clerk. Three freeholders (Axel B. "Junie" Carlson, Jr., Albert "Buddy" Allen and veteran Director Joseph C. Irwin.) would lose their seats, throwing control of the Board to the Democrats for the first time since the 1930's.

Danskin and his successor, former Upper Freehold Township Mayor Frederick C. Kniesler, had their work cut out for them through much of the 70's and 80's. While control of the Board of Freeholders would swing back and forth during this period, the Democrats were never able to keep the majority for more than two years and the G. O. P remained a dominant force, growing stronger into the 80's.

During the Danskin and Kniesler chairmanships, the organization was united and factionalism was nearly nonexistant due to their leadership styles. Their persuasive qualities led to respect; this is the sign of a true leader.

Kniesler did not seek reelection in 1986 and was succeeded by former Assemblyman William F. Dowd, who was chairman for a very long time. Dowd's first freeholder election was lost to Democrats John "Flippy" D'Amico and John "Well Done" Villapiano, but subsequently he presided over 17 years of county level wins.

In the beginning, Dowd's leadership style followed the Danskin/Kniesler model, but he soon proved to be different. Dowd's leadership style was more flambuoyant for one, and he was not afraid to choose up sides in local disputes. Once you do that, resentment festers and factions develop. Still, factions remained confined to the local level; the county level remained largely unified.

This would begin to unravel.

In 1995 Dowd announced that he would not support Sheriff William M. Lanzaro for a sixth term due to potential problems with the sheriff's personal finances. This would result in the first major contested primary for county office in many years. Lanzaro was defeated by Joseph W. Oxley, who would go on to serve four terms as sheriff himself and is our current county chairman.


In 2003, reacting to negative reporting about Sen. John O. Bennett in the Asbury Park Press, Dowd announced that the Monmouth County G. O. P. would not support Bennett for another term. Still, Dowd did not replace Bennett on the county organization line or back his primary opponent. This resulted in Bennett's loss to Ellen Kärcher, and the loss of Assemblymembers Clare Farragher and Michael Arnone to Democrats Robert Morgan and Michael Panter.

Also in 2003 Dowd took sides in the raging dispute between the Middletown Township Committee and the developers of the proposed Town Center, drawing the ire of yet another state legislator, Assemblyman Joseph Azzolina, who's family was looking to develop the property. This move would also raise a local Middletown issue to a county issue. Dowd would later go on to threaten to withdraw organization support for Azzolina if he chose to run for reelection in 2005.

And the band played on...

All this time Dowd was neglecting the operations of the Monmouth County Republican Committee. Fundraising was lackluster, there was little or no party building, and political decisions relating to the County were delegated to Freeholder Director Harry Larrison, Jr., and we all know how that worked out.

In 2004, Dowd decided that Freeholder Edward Stominski had to go, and in a small gathering in a gracious drawing room overlooking the wide and lazy Navesink, Stominski was denied organization backing in favor of Robert Clifton, resulting in yet another countywide primary, in which Clifton would defeat Stominski and go on to be elected freeholder.

Many loyal Republicans saw this as the final straw. A movement was begun to unseat Dowd. This was unprecedented in a county with a tradition of uncontested chairman's elections. Several current and former officeholders were approached, including Dr. Mike Arnone of Red Bank. All the A-List people demurred. Finally, the little - known Fred Niemann of Wall agreed to run and went on to soundly defeat Dowd. Fred would eventually turn on many of those who supported him and ally himself with the same factions (And by then there were factions!) Dowd was allied with, even following through on Dowd's proposal to deny party backing to Joe Azzolina.
Niemann also oversaw the creation of the controversial PACs, which generated bad publicity to our party while failing to address the anemic fundraising of the past several years. The PACs were among the issues believed to convince Niemann that he should not run for chairman again.
Niemann's successor as chairman was Adam Puharic, like Niemann another unknown. Adam came in on a positive note, promising unity. He presented himself as a master fundraiser and public relations person. Many had hope for the party under Puharic's leadership.
Things were about to get really weird.
The mercurial chairman instituted a screening process designed to unseat Freeholder Anna Little. He publicly criticized the Board of Chosen Freeholders, once on the county pay - to- play policy and again on the transfer of an employee. His bouncing from job to job became the butt of jokes, as did his proposal that Rudy Giuliani move to New Jersey to run for U. S. Senate. Fundraising did not improve, to the point that the rent for Republican Headquarters was several months past due. The self - proclaimed PR whiz became a walking PR nightmare. In the end it was found that Adam Puharic was an unsuccessful Township Committee candidate who went on to serve as a Municipal Chairman who's only local race ended in defeat for his candidates. He opted not to run this year, resulting in the unanimous election of Joe Oxley as chairman.
Oxley is a known quantity; the former sheriff has previously served as Middletown mayor and committeeman as well as a municipal prosecutor. Once again an A - List person occupies the chair.

"OXLEY - CLEAN"

Well, after two years, I finally get to use that slogan. Former Sheriff Joseph W. Oxley was unanimously elected Monmouth County Republican Chairman last night. No shenanigans were evident.

This is the first unanimous chairman's election since 2002, when William F. Dowd was elected to his final term. Dowd would go on to be unseated in 2004 by Frederick P. Niemann. In 2006, Niemann opted not to run again; Adam N. Puharic would succeed him, defeating James Giannell for the post.

Make no mistake. Joe has his work cut out for him.

Factions should hopefully not be an issue, as Joe is a known quantity in the party and appears to be sincerely above the petty sniping that has bedeviled our great party for the last few years. A strong leader can work with people regardless of differences. It is a good sign that he has received rave reviews from across our diverse party.

Organization and fundraising will be major issues on Chairman Oxley's plate. The Democrats are one seat away from controlling the Board of Chosen Freeholders. And a look at local candidate filings this year shows the Democrats contesting Colts Neck (again!), Freehold Township, Rumson and even Brielle. The blue tide must be beaten back on both the local and county levels or it's Bergen County with beaches. The Dems are playing for keeps here and we ignore that at our peril.

Fundraising must be closely looked at. We must outraise the Democrats or we're done. (See Bergen County with beaches, above.) While we mustn't sink to the Democrats' level here, we must also be sure not to cripple our own fundraising ability. Important here is retiring the Party's $30,000.00 debt. The $6,000.00 that Puharic claims to have spent on his credit card needs to be looked into as well, and resolved appropriately. If it was for authorized party expenses, then he may deserve to be reimbursed, otherwise he may have to eat it.

Finally, communication is key to politics. Previous chairmen have blasted G. O. P. bloggers. Joe may want to reverse that and establish a Chairman's Blog. This can be used to post online messages and increase the visibility of our great party and its candidates. I would link him here if he did.

Best of luck to our new Chairman!!!

CANDIDATE WEBSITES

With the Primary over and done with, the Candidate Websites have been updated once again.
John McCain, our presumptive presidential nominee, remains at the head of the list, followed by Dick Zimmer for U. S. Senate. Two out of three Monmouth County congressional campaigns are linked, Rep. Chris Smith in the Fourth District and Alan Bateman of Holmdel in the Thirteenth. Except for a page at the Affiliated Republican Club of Monmouth County website, we have no information on Judge Bob McLeod's Sixth District campaign site, or if he has one yet. If anyone has any info on his website, please post it and I will link it; if there isn't one yet I strongly recommend that he get one. Either way, I'll link it.
Also no info on whether the 2008 Freeholder campaign will run its own website.

MCRC Republican Chairman's Convention Location Update

THURSDAY JUNE 5, 2008
MCRC Republican Chairman's Convention Location Update

Please be advised that the location for the Monmouth County Republican Committee's County Chairman's convention location has changed!

The convention will now be held at the Colts Neck High School,
at the corner of Five Points Road & Rt. 537, Colts Neck.

The convention will begin at 7:00 p.m. Sharp! on Tuesday, June 10th

Check in to begin at 6:30.

If you have any questions please call Kathleen at 732-431-6664.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Monmouth County Republican Party

www.MonmouthRepublican.org

info@MonmouthRepublican.org

732.431.6664

2008 CHAIRMAN'S ELECTION

WEDNESDAY May 28, 2008
MCRC County Chairman Convention

The convention for the next Monmouth County Republican Chairman will be held on

June 10, 2008 at the Lincroft Inn

700 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft

7:00 p.m.

For more information contact Kathleen at 732-431-6664

--------------------------------------------------------------

Monmouth County Republican Party

www.MonmouthRepublican.org

info@MonmouthRepublican.org

732.431.6664

STABILITY NEEDED

With the confirmed withdrawal of Adam Puharic from consideration for a second term as County Republican Chairman, the Monmouth County GOP finds itself faced with the prospect of electing yet another new chairman. Events have moved rapidly in the two weeks since it was revealed that Adam's house was for sale. Since then he has gone from running for reelection to withdrawal.
What now?
Several names have been thrown about; a front - runner would appear to be former Sheriff Joe Oxley of Middletown, if he wants it. Oxley is respected and well - liked, and his appeal cuts across factions. And last month, Tommy DeSeno at Justified Right wrote a strong post on what we should expect of a unifying County Chairman.
Stability is needed. Our great party is weakened if we continue to change chairmen every two years. Still, it is also weakened if the chairman is a polarizing or divisive force. It is then important to choose a strong and unifying leader, one with the people skills to deal with this diverse organization we call the Monmouth County Republican Party. A leader who will have an honest and forthright, yet aggressive fundraising apparatus. We must outraise the Democrats if we are to retain control of our great County, but we must not stoop to their levels. A leader who will recognize that difference of opinion is not out of line. We're all Republicans, aren't we? Differing points of view within our party should be met with an open mind, not Rastaman.
Within the next few weeks, a candidate or candidates will emerge. County committee members will be contacted for support. (This one cannot be put through a screening committee.) Inform yourselves and make your choice wisely.

INTERESTING POST

Sen. Barry Goldwater at Voice of Reason has an interesting post on Long Branch, the erstwhile vacation spot of presidents (Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, and Woodrow Wilson) that has now become a major battlefield in the war against eminent domain abuse.

PUHARIC MOVING

A day or so ago we received a tip that County Chairman Adam Puharic put his house up for sale. So we went to work and found that he had in fact listed his house with Weichert Realtors in Aberdeen. He's asking $369,400.00.
At this point we don't know where he's relocating to, or whether it's even in Monmouth County or not. We also don't know why he didn't list his house with the Danskin Agency.

I'M BAAAAAAAAACK!!!

After being MIA for nearly a month, the Monmouth County Republican Blog is back on line. Between a vacation and coming back to computer malfunctions here at The Blog Cabin, your host has had little opportunity to blog other than the occasional comment on other sites.

During the past month, we had the Monmouth County Republican Convention, where John Curley of Red Bank bested Holmdel's Serena DiMaso in an upset. There was the Jerry Springer Show that has become the race for the Senatorial nomination. Don't forger the ongoing soap opera, As Trenton Turns, starring the Bozo-coiffed Governor Jonathan Stevens Corzine and featuring a magic room called the Attorney General's office, where heavyweights who enter are magically transformed into lightweights. Howell has quieted down (but it's early!), and Mayor Joe DiBella has decided against seeking a second term.

Anyway, sports fans, the Monmouth County Republican Blog is back. It's not going away.

ESTABROOK NOT RUNNING

PolitickerNJ.com reports that Anne Evans Estabrook is dropping out of the race for U. S. Senate for health reasons. She had suffered a mini-stroke on Monday.
This leaves State Sen. "Jersey Joe" Pennacchio and Prof. Murray Sabrin as the only declared names in the field, with Pennacchio the clear front-runner.
Pennacchio is a conservative and, like former Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler, would probably find fierce opposition from the "moderate" establishment wing of the party. The name of Ambassador Clifford Sobel has been floated.
We wish Anne Estabrook a full and speedy recovery.

HOLLYWOOD AL NOT RUNNING

The Asbury Park Press reports that retired Superior Court Judge "Hollywood Al" Lehrer will not be a Democratic candidate for freeholder this year. Lehrer, a former county prosecutor, was most recently noted for lobbying the Board of Chosen Freeholders to reappoint curmudgeonly County Counsel Malcolm Carton.

CONDOLENCES

Our condolences go out to former County Chairman Bill Dowd on the loss of his brother, Hector P. Dowd.

ROMNEY ENDORSES McCAIN

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will endorse Sen. John McCain today in his drive for the Republican Party's presidential nomination, according to reports on The Rush Limbaugh Show. It is also reported that Romney will release his delegates to support McCain so as to give the Arizona Senator enough votes to clinch the nomination.
No word yet on what effect this will have on reported efforts by the New Jersey Romney campaign to field a slate of delegates in the June primary, but it may be like the Japanese soldiers found years after World War II who were unaware that the war was over and they had lost.
Also no word yet on what effect, if any, this news will have on the Draft Joe Kyrillos for U. S. Senate movement. (UPDATE: Joe Kyrillos will not be running for the U. S. Senate. The Draft Kyrillos.com site has been taken down, although the blog is still up.)